A GRAND deal for Memorial Day!

It’s a Grand Deal for Memorial Day

It’s a grand old flag, and we’ve got a grand deal for you! To honor Memorial Day we’re offering a 10% COUPON CODE valid on all online orders for United States Flags. That’s 10% off the purchase price of ALL U.S. flags — outdoor, indoor, large, and complete sets! Just use the promo code GRAND10 at checkout, and get your grand deal now through the end of May!

A reminder —

On Memorial Day fly your flag at half-staff from sunrise until noon only. At noon, raise it briskly to the top of the staff until sunset, in honor of the nation’s battle heroes.

A Grand Old Flag

“You’re a grand old flag,
You’re a high flyin’ flag
And forever in peace may you wave . . .”

Almost every American has heard this song. George M. Cohan wrote it for a lesser known stage musical in 1906. The musical was titled “George Washington, Jr.” and although not many people have heard of the play, the song has continued through the years to become one of the most recognized patriotic songs in America.

Legend has it that the original song was “You’re a Grand Old Rag”. A Civil War veteran holding an old, tattered flag told Cohan that the carefully folded flag was “a grand old rag” and Cohan thought it was a great line. However, so many people and groups objected to calling the flag a rag, that he changed the word to flag and the song has become a perennial favorite. In fact, the sheet music was the first from a musical to sell over a million copies.

The United States Flag

The Continental Congress adopted the first official United States flag on June 14, 1777 with the following: “Resolved: that the flag of the United States be thirteen stripes, alternate red and white;that the union be thirteen stars, white in a blue field, representing a new constellation.” As new states were added, so were additional stars AND stripes.

The addition of Vermont and Kentucky in 1795 created a flag with fifteen stars and fifteen stripes. In 1818, after five more states were added, the number of stripes on the new flag was cut back to the original thirteen, but five more stars were added to make 20. This basic design has been used since then; and, as more states joined, more stars were added. 27 different star patterns demonstrate how the United States grew over the years. Interestingly, no U.S. Flag ever becomes obsolete so it is legal to fly any of these flags at any time.

The Meaning

Do the colors of the flag hold any significance? There is no documentation to show why the Continental Congress chose red, white and blue. But the Congress of the Confederation chose these same colors in 1782 for the Great Seal of the United States. They listed the red as valor and hardiness, the white as purity and innocence, and the blue as vigilance, perseverance and justice.

Some say that George Washington interpreted the colors differently. His idea may have been that the stars came from the sky, the red was borrowed from the British flag, and the white stood for the secession from the home country. There is no official explanation available for the colors of the flag.

A senator from Massachusetts, Robert C. Winthrop (1809-1894), is attributed with this quote: “Our flag is our national ensign, pure and simple, behold it! Listen to it! Every star has a tongue, every stripe is articulate.“

Remember

This Memorial Day, let all the flying flags remind us to stop for a moment and consider those who lost their lives serving our great country. And if you have a Grand Old Rag, consider replacing it with a Grand Old Flag with our grand deal and get 10% off at About Flags!